Outside review finds deep flaws in MNsure website

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Jan 22, 2014 at 12:56 pm

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The troubled website for Minnesota's health insurance exchange can't be completely fixed in time for the March 31 deadline by which all Americans are supposed to have coverage under the new federal law.

That's the main finding of a review of MNsure by UnitedHealth Group division Optum.

The findings released Wednesday say the website won't be able to meet enrollment expectations without manual workarounds and other improvised fixes.

The report describes the MNsure website as deeply flawed and in need of extensive fixes to numerous applications. It says the MNsure call center, plagued by long wait times, is inefficiently designed and needs to add 100 employees to the current staff of 65.

The report lays out several long term options for improving the MNsure site for 2015 and 2016 enrollments.